Collapsible frame



April' s, 1943. I D. J. BUTTS 2,315,933

COLLAPS I BLE FRAME 'Filed Jan. 2, 1942 2 Sheet s-Sheet 1 April 6, 1943.v D. J. BUTTS COLLAPSIBLE FRAME Filed Jan. 2, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Apr. 6, 1943 COLLAPSIBLE FRAME Dannie .lay Butts, Alhambra, Calif.; Ethel L.

Butts, executrix of said Dannie Jay Butts, deceased, assignor to Ethel L. Butts, Alhambra,

Calif.

Application January 2, 1942, Serial No. 425,389

1 Claim. (01. 211-171) The invention relates to improvements in collapsible frames of a more or less general utility and particularly to umbrella types thereof, primarily designed for clothes drying but suitable for the all-purpose, in and out-of-doors, needs of the average household.

An object of the invention resides in the provision of a frame of the kind mentioned, that is of simple but durable construction, attractive in appearance, comparatively inexpensive to manufacture, and capable of being easily erected in a position of use and knocked down or collapsed into a compact state, when not needed, for convenience' and ease in storage or transportation from one place of use to another.

Another object of the invention is to providereadily and easily converted into a beach umbrella or lawn sunshade by the simple expedient of applying a detachable covering to the top side of the frame in its erected position of use.

With these and other objects of equal importance in view, the invention resides in the certain new and useful combination, construction and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, set forth in the appended claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in

which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a preferred embodiment of the invention, showing the frame parts in both extended and partially collapsed positions;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the improved but taken on the line 1 of Figure 6;

,Figure 8 is a view similar to that of Figure l, but showing a slightly modified or reversed arrangement of certain of the frame parts; and;

V Figure 9 is another side elevation of one of the frameiorms and showing the detachable covering applied thereto to adapt the frame to use as a beach umbrella or lawn sunshade.

Referring to the drawings, wherein like characters of reference denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the preferred embodiment of the invention is depicted in Figures 1 to 7, and 9, and, as shown, is generally comprised in a post or standard l0 and a collapsible or foldable frame rotatably mounted on its upper end. This post or standard In is preferably made of a suitable length of wooden stock, circular in cross-section, and is to be supported in vertical position by having its lower end inserted into the ground or other suitable sustaining media, so as to support the frame at a desired height above the sustaining media.

The frame proper, sometimes called reel, is made up of a plurality of bars H, preferably of wood andifour in number, extending radially in equidistantly spaced relation from an annular hub or sleeve l2 which is rotatably and slidably mounted upon an intermediate part of the post or standard It). The inner ends of the bars II are pivoted, as at lit, to and between pairs of ears l4 carried on the outer side of the hub or sleeve 1 2 for the purpose. Intermediate their ends, the bars H are rpivoted, as at I5, to one of the ends of .complemental brace bars 16 which, in turn, are pivoted at their other ends, as at H, to and between pairs of ears I8 carried on the outer side of an annular collar I9. hereinafter called the lower hub, and the collar [9 are both formed of suitable lengths-of a metal tubing of uniform diameters to loosely fit the standard In. The collar l 9 has its upper end telescoped over the side wall of a metal cap 20, being secured to it by spot welding, as at 2|, to form a unitary upper hub structure for rotary seating engagement over the top of the standard In order to seat the upper hub structure, formed by the parts l920, for the desired rotary movement thereon, the upper end of the standard I0 is reduced in diameter, as at 22, for seating engagement therewith of the hub part 20, so that the lower edge of the side wall of the latter has bearing on the shoulder formed at the base of the reduced portion 22. The end wall of the hub part 20 is centrally apertured, as at 23, to engage over the projecting end of a stud 24 fixed in the top end of the standard It); the stud end being screw threaded to receive a nut 25 to retain the upper hub against accidental displacement during extension and collapsing movements of the frame occasioned by manipulative sliding movements of the lower hub l2 on the standard.

The frame bars II are provided with several equidistantly spaced apertures for the threading through the same, from one bar to the others, of a correspondingnumber of cord or rope lengths 25, from which articles of wearing apparel or the like may be suspended for drying. The ears l4 and 18, of the lower and upper hubs, respectively, are preferably formed by the angled ends of lengths of a metal strip which have their intermediate portions 21 curved for close fit with the The sleeve l2, 7

outer sides of the hub parts l2 and H), to which they are secured, as at 28, :by rivets, spot welding or the like.

To place the frame in its operative condition, from its normally collapsed or folded state, the lower hub I2 is grasped by the hand and pushed upwardly on the standard In until the frame bars ll extend radially outward in a plane parallel to the aforesaid supporting media. When the frame bars II are horizontally disposed, the cords or ropes 28 are stretched taut sufficiently to support articles of wearing apparel or the like suspended therefrom, without appreciable sagging. The frame is retained in its operative state by means of a suitable latching device arranged to cooperate-with the lower hub I2 to that end, and, as shown in Figure 3, said latching means may be in the form of a spring tensioned detent 29 mounted within a recess provided in the standard I0. When it is desired to collapse or retract the frame, the detent 29 will be depressed inwardly of the recess against the tension of its spring and is over-ridden by the lower hub l2 in its downward movement. By rotating the frame on the standard 10, access to all sections of it may be readily had from any given position about it, to facilitate its loading and unloading when employed as a drying rack.

To convert the dryer frame thus provided into a beach umbrella or lawn sun-shade, a detachable covering 30 is provided and it can be made from any suitable flexible sheet material, preferably an all-Weather sun-proof fabric, and to the general shape of the frame in top plan, so that its edge will engage over the outer ends of the frame bars I l. Suitable fastenings (not shown) may be provided to positvely secure the covering edge to the frame bar ends, if required. An eyelet 3| is provided in the center of the covering 30 for engagement over the stud 24, beneath the nut 25. To apply the covering 30, it will be placed over the frame, with the eyelet 3| engaged over the stud 24 prior to the raising of the standard 10 to the vertical and before the frame is extended. With the standard emplaced and the frame extended, the edge of the covering is then drawn downward over the ends of the frame bars H until the covering is stretched taut.

In the modification of the collapsible frame shown in Figure 8, the relative positions of the frame bars and the brace bars therefor are reversed. Here, the frame bars H are pivoted, as at 13, to the ears IE on the upper hub part l8, and the brace bars [6, as at l, to the frame bars H and, as at ll, to the ears [4 of the lower hub I2. Otherwise, from both structural and operative viewpoints, the two forms of frames are identical, except that, in lieu of the direct manipulation of the lower hub l2, for

' extending and collapsing the frame, an actuator for the same is provided to facilitate its axial movements. This actuator is comprised in a length of strong cord or the like 32 leading upwardly from a point of securement to one of the ears M on the lower hub l2 to and over a pulley 33 which is carried by an ear l8 on the upper hub part IS. The free end of the cord 32 suspends from the pulley 33 and is provided with a hand grip 34 to facilitate its manipulation. With the standard l0 emplaced in a vertical position of use, a pull on the cord 32 at the hand grip 34 will lift the lower hub axially of the standard and cause the frame bars II to be ex tended radially outward from the latter, the lifting motion of the lower hub being transmitted to the frame bars through the brace bars I6. Upon release of cord 32, the frame will be prevented from collapsing by the engagement of the lower edge of the lower hub with a detent, corresponding to the detent 29 (Figure 3), to be likewise provided on the standard It). To collapse the frame, the detent 29' will be depressed and thereafter be over-ridden by the lower hub 22' in its downward movement on the standard.

By making the hubs l2 and I9, 20, and the ears M and I8 from sheet metal of a proper gauge, the manufacture and assembly of the same is facilitated and the labor and material costs are reduced to a minimum. As shown, the metal strips, from which the ears l4 and I8 are formed, are preferably made rigid by means of reinforcements 35 which are of elongated concavo-convex form and extend longitudinally of. the strips between the ends thereof. With this form of reinforcement, the inner ends of the rivets 28, securing the strips to the hubs, readily countersink themselves in the walls of the latter, as is 'best shown in Figures 5 and 7.

The covering 30 for the frame or reel may be finished off to an added degree of attractiveness by having its edge provided with a fiounce or fringe 36, substantially as shown.

Having thus fully described my invention, it is to be understood that variations in details of construction and arrangement of parts can be resorted to by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention or its scope as claimed.

What is claimed is:

In a device of the class described, a standard of circular cross-section, an upper hub of tubular sheet metal closed at its upper end rotatably seated on the top end of the standard, a lower hub also of tubular sheet metal slidably mounted on the standard below the upper hub, elongated sheet metal straps secured at their centers to and in spaced relation about said hubs and hav ing their opposite ends angularly bent to project radially of the hubs, the adjacent ends of the straps being disposed in closely spaced relation to form pairs of parallel ears, frame members having one end of each pivotally engaged with a pair of the ears on one of said hubs, brace members having one end of each pivotally engaged with a pair of the ears on the other of said hubs and the other end with a frame member at an intermediate point thereon, an outwardly depressed portion formed longitudinally of each of said straps and extending into the bent ends thereof to reinforce the same, said frame and brace members being normally collapsed. relatively to the standard and adapted to be extended radially of the latter upon movement of the lower hub relatively to the upper hub, said lower hub being elongated below the straps thereon to provide a hand engaging portion to facilitate its manipulation, and means carried by the standard to hold the lower hub when it is moved to frame member extending position, said lower hub being rotatable with the upper hub when the frame members are moved about the standard.

DANNIE J-AY BUTTS. 

